Officially known as the Commonwealth of Bahamas; Bahamas is an island country encompassing 180,000 square miles of ocean space. The island is comprised of over 70 islands, inlets and cays in the Atlantic Ocean, north of Cuba, the Dominican Republic, south east of Florida, and east of the Florida Keys and northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands. The capital of Bahamas is Nassau which is located on the island of New Providence. Bahamas can be referred as either a country or a larger part of an island chain that includes the Turks and Caicos Island.
Facts About the Bahamas.
- Bahamas was originally inhabited by the tribe of the Arawak-speaking Taino people known as the Lucayan. And was the first site the Genoese explorer, navigator and colonizer Christopher Columbus made landfall in 1492 during his discovery of the New World. In spite of the fact that the Spanish explorers never colonized the island of Bahamas, the native Lucayan people were shipped to the Dominican Republic and Haiti where they were sold into slavery. As such between 1530 through to 1648 the island of Bahamas was mostly deserted when English colonists from the British Overseas Territory Bermuda migrated to the island of Eleuthera.
- The Bahamas became known as a haven for notorious pirates such as the infamous Black Beard during propriety rule.
- In 1718 the island of Bahamas became a British Crown Colony under the royal governorship of Woodes Rogers when the British sought to put an end to piracy and restore an orderly government. Later thousands of American Loyalists after the American War of Independence with Britain migrated with their slaves to the island of Bahamas where they established a plantation economy.
- In 1807 with the abolishment of the international slave trade by Britain, the Royal Navy relocated a large number of captive slaves as free Africans set free from the black-market slave ships in the Bahamas during the 19th This resulted in a large number of Black Seminoles and American slaves making their way to the islands from the Florida coast. During the efforts of the Royal Navy almost 500 slaves were set free from American merchant ships in the domestic trade. It was not until 1834 that slavery in the Bahamas was abolished. The majority of Bahamas population today is made up from descendants of the free and captive Africans which is lends to a number of issues in the society today originating from the slavery days.
- In 1973 Bahamas was recognized as an independent sovereign state and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations acknowledging Queen Elizabeth II as the reigning constitutional monarch.
- Next to the Unites States and Canada, the island of the Bahamas is one of the most wealthiest countries in the Americas respective to their gross domestic product.
- According to the Governor of Bahamas in 1864 the island of the Bahamas constituted of 29 islands, 661 cays and 2.387 rocks in the quarter.
- The Bahamas island of Bimini is the closest island to the United States and is considered as the gateway to the Bahamas. To the east of grand Bahama lies the island of Abaco. Inagua is the south-easternmost island. And the largest of the islands known as Andros Island. Other inhabited islands of the Bahamas include cat Island, San Salvador, Acklins Island, Mayaguana, Long Island and New Providence which hosts its capital.
- The Bahamas according to the Kõppen climate classification boasts a tropical or savannah climate and has never experienced a freeze over or frost. Occasionally temperatures every few decades will appear in the low figures between 37 to 14 °F for just a few hours. But generally the climate is warm and winterless.
- Bahamas population is estimated at about 382,820 and in 2010 was recorded as having a population growth rate of about 0.93 percent.
- Bahamas generates most of its economic activity through tourism which is not only responsible for more than 60 percent of the Bahamas GDP but also is the main source of jobs for more than 50 percent of the Bahamian workforce. Next to tourism the islands financial services is the second most important economic sector which is responsible for over 15 percent Bahamas GDP.
- The more popular sports in the Bahamas are those which have been adopted from the United States due to the islands close proximity. And include spectator sports such as American Football, Basketball and Baseball unlike most Caribbean countries who recognize cricket as the more widely played sport.
Nassau Port Web Cam
Bahamas Nassau Port web cam offers online viewers a 24 hour view of Bahama’s Nassau Port. By clicking on the link provided below visitors can watch the sunrise from the Bahamian shore or cruise ships as they pull in to port at the Nassau harbor.
View Nassau Port Web Cam.
Rocky Bay Web Cam
The Rocky Bay Abaco Web cam offers online viewers with a live oceanic view of Bahamas looking South East from White Sound, Elbow Cay. The web cam which is updated every 5 minutes was added on October 24, 2006 and is operated by Rocky Bay.
View Rocky Bay Web Cam.
Bahamas Tilloo Cut Web Cam
Situated at Elbow Cay, Bahamas southern end, the Tilloo Cut is a passageway in-between Tilloo Cay and Elbow Cay which facilitates the passage of boats traveling between the Atlantic Ocean and the Abaco Sea.
View Bahamas Tilloo Cut Web Cam.
Bahama’s Underwater Explorers Society Web Cam
Located on the Port Lucaya Marina within the shopping Mecca of Grand Bahama, the Underwater Explorers Society commonly referred to as UNEXSO offers visitors and local residents a wide variety of dolphin and underwater events. On of the more popular of which is the society’s dolphin swims where persons are allowed to interact and swim with the dolphins within a secure lagoon.
Click on the links below to gain a firsthand experience via a live web cam stream of the UNEXSO dolphin adventure and their Pool Cam.
View UNEXSO Live Dolphin Web Cam.
View UNEXSO Live Pool Cam.